The Business of Camp: We all have to make the numbers work, but how do we keep up with it?

At the upcoming Tri-State and New England Camp Conferences, I am presenting on the "business of camp." The business of camp is always on my mind. I love working with directors who don't love working on business aspects of camp. Why? I get to see their passion for their camp's mission and the experiences they can provide for kids, which is absolutely something that I share, as a camp founder and former director. But at the end of the day, the bottom line has to work so that directors can continue to provide these wonderful camp-filled summers.

Below are a few slides from my upcoming presentation with questions and thoughts about how to frame business within your camp. Remember: you are not alone in this!

Strategic planning: I've spoken to a lot of camps who have wondered about hiring firms to do a major strategic plan with them. While that may be helpful at some point, often you know your camp best, and you know how to get input from your stakeholders. Before you spend tens of thousands of dollars and tons of your time on a major strategic plan, my suggestion is to start in-house. Projecting plans too far out (say, 5-10 years) often leads to the plan collecting dust on the shelf because things have changed at your camp, in the industry, or in the world (remember Covid?). Start from within. What are your 1-3 year goals in each of these categories? What categories would you add? Who is helping you with this?

We'll dive into budgeting, look at sample budgets from different types of camps, and talk about forecasting. Here are some questions to ask yourself:

With all that is on camp directors’ plates, it’s important to spend time on the finances, but it can be hard to find the time.

Of course, there is so much more to talk about! Each camp is unique.

I'm always here if you want to talk shop, business of camp-related or otherwise.